Even Tim Duncan, whose occasional yips at the foul line are notorious, is shooting 70.7 percent, well above his career average.

Some credit goes to shooting coach Chip Engelland, of course, who works with many of the Spurs’ shooters. But it’s not like Engelland just started teaching free throws last summer.

“We’ve been working on it,” Ginobili said. “But every year we work on it.”

The uptick in free-throw percentage is a small reason the Spurs are scoring at a Popovich-era high clip, 106.6 points per game. If last year’s team, which shot 74 percent from the foul line, had been as accurate, it would have resulted in an increase of 1.5 points per game, moving that team’s scoring average up to 103.

Ginobili, who ranks seventh in the league in free-throw accuracy, is most proud of the fact that the Spurs seem to be making more foul shots in the clutch. In Friday’s 107-101 win over Minnesota, the Spurs made all 16 of their attempts in the fourth quarter, coming back from 15 points down in the win.

“We’re making important ones, too, when it counts,” said Ginobili, who was 13-of-13 against Minnesota. “That makes it look even better.”

Ginobili, like Popovich, has no explanation for why the Spurs are suddenly clutch from the foul line. He just hopes it keeps up.